Does Teaching Kids To Get 'Gritty' Help Them Get Ahead?

http://www.npr.org/2014/03/17/290089998/does-teaching-kids-to-get-gritty-help-them-get-ahead?utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_source=share&utm_medium=twitter

This article talks about "girt" which is perseverance and determination.  Schools that teach grit change their way of thinking and teaching so that they are teaching their students to make mistakes and take chances even if they might be wrong.  It teaches them to get back up and keep trying even when they fail.  It challenges their thinking and keeps them trying instead of just giving up when things get hard.   They are still working on getting data to show the effectiveness of this mindset being taught in the school, but it has already shown an improvement in test scores.

I think this is a really interesting way to teach students.  In the article they talk about how they never use the words "smart," "gifted," or "brilliant."  Instead the way teachers praise is by telling them that "they must have worked hard" or  "To have performed this well, you must have put out a lot of effort." So it changes the positive reinforcement and praise to focus on the work they did and the effort they gave rather than the actual grade on the assignment. In fact, some schools even grade them on effort, not just the assignments. How do you think this would change kids?  Would it take away the "entitlement" people talk about kids having these days?  How would this affect school social workers' roles?